La Casa del Wacho is the home of Fred and Joan Brumbach. Located in Dare County just outside the town limits of Manteo, NC, La Casa is situated in the middle of Roanoke Island just west of Jocky's Ridge across the Roanoke Sound from Nags Head on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Fred and Joan purchased the estate of Captain Ellery Midgett in 1993 and permanently moved there from Richmond, Va. in 1995
The property as seen in 1993
This is what Fred and Joan saw when they purchased the estate. A spralling one story brick ranch sitting on nearly 2 acres of tall grass with a few schrubs. It was not a beautiful place by any means, but they had visions of what it might be with a lot of work.
About the Brumbachs
Fred and Joan met at University of Richmond where they were both theatre students. They were married at the Cannon Chapel of the University in a Shakespearian wedding in 1971 and both pursued carreers in the entertainment industry. Fred as a set, lighting, and sound designer, and Joan as a costume designer. They sold their first company, Backstage, Inc in Richmond, Va. in 1995 and moved to Roanoke Island to start a new chapter in their lives. Their vision of renovating this home continues to the present as they develope the home and the gardens. All the work on the property is done just by the two owners and it has taken 21 years to get to this point.
The Gardens
Fred is a self taught Topiarist and spends much of his time cutting and training the foliage in his gardens. Most of the topiaries are Eastern Red Cedar which are native to the island. He either cuts them where they volunteer, or he moves them to specific locations to add to his collection of sculptured creations. Surrounding the topiaries are many flower gardens such that there is always something blooming year round. Joan helps Fred in planting and maintaining these gardens and it is nearly a full time job for both of them.
Yard Art
Through out the gardens are many sculptures or what the Brumbach's call "yardart" They both collect pieces from other artists, create their own, or gather things found on the beaches of the Outer Banks. Most every garden contains something of interest or just something "wacky". This is where the name, La Casa del Wacho was born! This particular sculpture, the globe, is a piece Fred and Joan created for both a client's 75th birthday party with an international theme, and Derbyshire Baptist Church, " Christmas Around the World" yearly Christmas concert.
The Gazebo
The gazebo is the Brumbach's current completed project. They began this in May 0f 2013 and finished in January of 2016. This was built from scratch with concrete, glass and copper. Their theatre background taught the Brumbach's to work in many materials or at least to challenge thenselves with new techniques and materials. At the top of this home page are two links to the construction of the gazebo.
Exotic plants
This Agave Americana, the blue agave' is one of many unusual plants hosted in the gardens. Since Roanoke Island is a "micro climate" the Brumbachs try to push the boundries of many plants that typically are grown further south. They have many palms and succulants that sometimes must be covered if a winter season goes below the norm of about 28 degrees. Also on the property is a 2000 square foot conservatory of tropical plants that must be kept at 50 degrees. This conservatory also provides a protected place for the many potted gardens which are used through out the property in the summer. Also the gardens have something blooming year round with Camelias, Hydrangea, Ligularias, Daffney, Azalea, lilies, and the usual annuals. Every inch of the property has been manipulated in some way. Other pages on the website will guide you through the many gardens.
Related websites
The Brumbachs host two other websites showing their business interests.
Fred's website is "onstagegear.com"
Joan's website is "mothervineyardartisans.com"
